


Cole's Sleeping Therapy

by Twilighthawke



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Gen, Sleep
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-11
Updated: 2015-03-19
Packaged: 2018-03-17 09:31:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3524219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Twilighthawke/pseuds/Twilighthawke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Trevelyan's confronts Cole about his sleeping arrangements and ends up having a different sort of conversation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Cole, where do you sleep?”

Cole looked up from the design he was tracing in the dirt of the courtyard. Erica was standing over him. Her worry drifted past his ears. She always wore the Inquisitor title, invisibly around her shoulders and over her face. He liked how it buzzed with power no one but he could see. She was a protector.

“Sleep?” Was all he said.

Erica’s brows pushed together. Cole thought she wanted to look angry. Or feel angry. She didn’t want him to read her thoughts. But it didn’t work and Cole could hear her real words. They flowed out of her and through him.

“Sleep. Dreams or the fade? Does he remember? Can he sleep at all? Can’t ever catch him in camp.” Cole gave voice to her feelings and smiled, reassuringly he thought. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

Erica sighed and dropped down to his level, chin resting on her knees. She brought a hand up to his face, brushing the hair out of his eyes. Cole didn’t usually use his eyes to see, but he liked having Erica’s faith so close to him.

“I will probably always worry about you Cole,” She sighed. “You always look so tired.”

‘So did she’ Cole thought. When she slept, he could sense her falling deep into the fade but not interacting with it.

“Dark. Darkness, falling.” Cole couldn’t stop himself. “No matter how much time I spend sleeping, I never rest. Dreams I can’t remember…” She gently rested her fingers on his lips, halting his speech. She looked even more worried than she had when she had first approached him. It was all wrong. He wasn’t helping.

“Don’t repeat that to Solas,” She said quietly as she removed her hand. “I don’t want him prying into my dreams… or lack thereof.” She cut her eyes to the side.

“He could help you,” Cole insisted. “I can’t help you, let him help you.” Cole grabbed her hand. She was surprised. Good, maybe if he surprised her she would let someone help her.

“Okay Cole.” Erica responded at length. “I’ll talk to the elf.” She patted his hand and made to stand. Cole stood with her, keeping hold of her hand. Her eyes crinkled with amusement. “Are we going right now?”

“Yes.”

She laughed. Her laugh made others want to smile. Even Cassandra.

“Okay Cole, let’s go see Solas. I’m sure he’s forgiven me for that whole amulet thing.” She turned towards the tower.

“He hasn’t.”

She laughed again and Cole squeezed her fingers, the way Cullen does after the war room.

“Well, that’s good to know anyway.” She led the way to the grumpy elf’s office.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of the Fade.

She was falling.

She was always falling. When the dream begins, she’s already in the air. It didn’t make any sense, to fall you have to leave somewhere. There has to be something to fall into. In the dream there was nothing yet, the sensation of falling persisted.

Erica didn’t have any irrational phobias. She killed spiders, and she wasn’t bothered by heights. Some would argue that she didn’t have any rational phobias either. She didn’t fear demons or assassins and has never had a dream where she’s caught in public in nothing but her smalls.

Nevertheless, the dream frightened the Inquisitor. Normally Erica delt with fear the usual way; buy stabbing it until it stopped moving. Until now, that had been a system that had worked. Being the inquisitor meant that there were at least four problems in her day that could be solved with stabbing. Nameless, faceless fear was doubling unsettling when it’s something you can’t fight.

Erica swung Cole’s hand a little as they walked, side by side, to Solas’ rotunda. Erica had a brother. Erica had three brothers actually, but it had been many years since she had seen them. The brother directly after her in age was roughly three years younger than she was and Cole reminded her of him. Her brother was older than Cole, but the last time she had seen her younger brother he had been around this age.

She sighed at the memory. They had both been very young, and very stupid.

“Angry words, sorry eyes,” Cole started. “Why is he always so pig-headed? Hands raised as if to strike but never fall. I’m sorry Bean…”

“Cole,” Erica stopped him. Normally she let Cole run on, he often gave her deeper insight into her own thoughts. But she didn’t want to go any deeper into those thoughts.

“I have his hair.” He continued anyway. “I would never hit you.” He said with conviction that warmed her heart.

“Neither would he,” She replied as she pushed open the door connecting the great hall to Solas’ study. “He just needed a reminder of that sometimes.” Solas was standing rather than sitting at his desk. He looked up as they entered, his face the usual mask.

“Inquisitor.” He greeted Erica. She wished she had Cole’s talent for reading people. Cole had said Solas was still not happy with her for letting Cole become more human. He should marry the Fade he loved it so much. She almost told him that, but she didn’t want to give him any ideas.

“Good afternoon.” Erica shifted uncomfortably. Cole squeezed her hand.

“How can I help you two?” Solas raised one eyebrow, curiosity overcoming any frostiness he might have been holding on to. Erica chickened out.

“Do you know where Cole sleeps at night?” She asked and Cole looked at her a little sharply. “I lie awake at night thinking he might be sleeping in a bush.” She kept her tone light.

“I have no doubt that you lie awake at night, I doubt very much where Cole bed’s down is the cause.” Solas smirked. Erica narrowed her eyes at the elf.

“What do you mean?” She asked as innocently as she could with two sets of blue eyes on her. Pale blue and storm grey.

“I walk the Fade Inquisitor,” Solas said. “I am attuned to what happens and when someone dreams as loudly as you do Inquisitor…” He trailed off meaningfully as he waited for her to process all of what he just said.

“You knew?!” She finally sputtered. “You knew I was having nightmares and you didn’t _say_ anything??”

“You never asked.” Solas said reasonably. “What would you have done anyway?” He had a point. Before receiving the anchor, Erica hadn’t the least sensitivity to the mystical. Her older brother had turned out to be a mage, and the family used to joke that he took all the magic the family had to offer. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Solas. If she didn’t trust him, she wouldn’t take him into battle as often as she did. The Fade was one of those problems she couldn’t stab.

“Falling,” Cole said. “Falling, falling,” He looked at Solas intensely. “You’ll help. I don’t know how to help.” Erica swallowed thickly, the dream pressing at her memory. She tried not to let herself think about it, not to visualize it.

“Yes,” Solas answered Cole’s question but he was addressing Erica. “I will help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone suggested I write more along this line. What line is that? I have NO idea, I'll let you know when i figure it out. Better yet, you tell me. Comments welcome


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we talk to Solas

Erica almost laughed. As it was she couldn’t keep a childish smile from tugging at the corners of her mouth.

“You want to watch me sleep,” She said, Solas rolled his eyes.

“Observe your dream was what I said,” Solas replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Semantics.”

“Not better.” Erica was being glib and they both knew it. “Fine, I could use a nap.” She sighed and headed for his couch. Cole perched on the end as she lay down and tried to get comfortable. “So do one of you want to sing me a lullaby?”

Cole might have if Solas hadn’t waved his hand and Erica slipped into darkness.

Falling again.

Falling and the feeling of weight above her. The blackness seemed to press in while leaving the impression of endless space. Every second she was absolutely certain the next would bring her body into contact with the ground. Terror gripped her tight and she tried to scream.

Bolting upright, a wordless shout rips from her throat. She panted for air as she realigned herself with her surroundings.

Solas’ rotunda.

Cole’s large eyes staring at her. How long was she asleep for? It felt like an eternity… and then again, like she had only just closed her eyes. She felt so tired.

“Fascinating,” Solas’ voice at her side. She turned to look at him. “What do you remember?” He asked.

“I-I” she swallowed and tried again. “I remember you putting me out. Thanks for the warning by the way, very subtle.” He brushed aside both her words and her obvious annoyance.

“No, when you were asleep. What do you remember about the dream?” His eyes were pinning her to the wall.

“Just what I always remember,” She shrugged, trying to make light of the panic the dream inflicted on her. “I’m falling, but there’s only blackness all around me.” She squirmed and looked just about anywhere but his eyes. “How long was I out for?” She asked.

“Two hours.” Cole said and Erica’s gaze snapped to Solas.

“That long?” She demanded. Solas just nodded distractedly.

“Fascinating,” Solas said again. “You do not remember the whole dream.”

“The whole dream?” It was like they were having two separate conversations. Erica receiving answers to questions she didn’t ask that just brought up more questions.

“I think it is possible the Anchor is both the cause and solution to your problem Inquisitor.” Solas’ eyes were positively sparkling with excitement. Glad to see someone was enthusiastic about her nightmares. She wished Cole wasn’t looking at her with his ice-blue eyes so full of worry.

“What do you mean?” Erica didn’t like feeling helpless or stupid, Solas was adept at making her feel both. He didn’t make her feel that way when he was telling her about the things he’s seen in the Fade. She liked the way he sounded when he told her about his adventures. Not like this, she didn’t like it when he looked at her like she was one of those things he was going to tell stories about.

“I suspect that if you were to fall asleep while focusing on the Anchor, you would be to recall the rest of your dream.” Solas sounded very confident for a man sitting around in his pajamas, telling women to go to sleep.

“Just because I was out for a long time doesn’t mean there’s more to the dream.” Erica didn’t know why she was arguing. Solas spent more time in the Fade then he did in our world. If he said there was more to her nightmare, he was probably right. It unnerved her that she had to depend on this secretive man.

“I followed you into the Fade, I saw more than just you falling.” Solas finally answered one of her questions.

“I stood watch,” Cole spoke up. Erica liked the image of a watchful Cole, standing patiently by while two people dozed in the middle of the day. She was suddenly glad she didn’t sleep talk like Cullen sometimes did.

“Thank you Cole, will you stand watch one more time?” She asked and he nodded. Erica looked back at Solas. “So I’ll see you in there?”

“Pleasant dreams.” Solas smiled that little secretive smile.

Erica stared at the mark on her hand; a jagged scar that didn’t look entirely physical. Almost as if it didn’t belong on a human. That thought followed her as she descended into sleep again.

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't set out to write solely for Cole, that's just how my life has turned out. I really love him. I hate that title. Got a better one? Please comment.


End file.
